Dallas marathoner making name for herself

Becky Wade is on her way to making a name for herself, if she hasn't already.

She won the first marathon she ever ran two years ago in Sacramento.

She won several races at Rice, where she was an All-American, and before that, at Ursuline Academy in Dallas.

You know the name, because everyone knows the case. Her grandfather was the "Wade" in the famous Roe vs. Wade abortion case.

"Roe had sued all the district attorneys in Texas, and there are 254," said Kim Wade, son of longtime former Dallas district attorney Henry Wade. "But she lived in Dallas County, so he was named as the first defendant."

In February, she will run in the Olympic trials, where the top three finishers at that marathon go to the 2016 summer games.

"It is possible," said Becky. "And it's something I think about a lot."

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Becky Wade, whose grandfather was the Wade in the Roe vs. Wade court case, is making a run toward the 2016 Olympics. Ted Madden has the story.

"If you had asked me the most athletic of my children, Becky would not be at the top of that list," said her mother, Suzanne Wade, also a lawyer.

Also featured in her childhood bedroom are signs she collected from panhandlers over the years.

"She would buy them from homeless people," said Suzanne. "And if she bought one she wanted them to still have a sign, so she would have something in the car to give them -- cardboard to make a new sign."

After graduating from college, Becky was awarded the Thomas J. Watson fellowship, which allows students to pursue independent study outside the United States for an entire year. Becky is writing a book about her experiences.

"My editor is good," said Becky, who added that the book will come out this summer. "She's a runner and likes to travel."

"Becky is the type of person that's going to do well at anything she does," said her dad, Kim. "She's going to give it everything she's got."

She will be one to watch this weekend during the Duo to Rio relay at the Dallas Marathon, and maybe one to watch in the 2016 summer games.